30.7.17

Adlai is the new "it" grain in the Philippines. Never thought we'd be munching on another local grain ("Are there even any?" is a question we get a lot from customers) in a country where people only ever eat rice (and in some areas, corn) as their staple food.

It's gluten-free, vaguely rice-like, and (mostly) sustainably grown. Dieters and avocado-and-egg-grain-bowl-eaters are hoarding it. Restaurants are serving it up in hearty bowls of "risotto" and fancied up tiny porridges.

You can have it in countless ways, but now that rainy season has made mush of our brains and turned us into little children again, we can think of nothing but "You can champorado that!".

So boil up your champorado like you usually do (or like this or this or this), keeping in mind that the adlai needs either a bit more of a soak or longer boiling. It will never become truly soft and mushy.

26.7.17

Balicucha! These pretty treats are nothing more than pulled mascobado syrup. The syrup is pulled (and pulled and pulled) when it is super tacky, and air turns the deep brown of evaporated cane juice into a light beige. We use them to sweeten our coffee or cacao drinks, as they melt upon contact with hot or warm water, making for a great party trick. They are quite a beautiful (and healthy) replacement for sugar cubes. Versions are found across sugar-producing areas such as Ilocos and the Visayas.

Once you start becoming acquainted with balicucha on a regular basis, you begin to see it everywhere. We often say they are shaped like little palmiers–those delicious, sweet, flaky french pastries. Here are some from original gangsta Martha Stewart's website. You may fancy making some.

Incidentally, they also resemble (just this particular recently published photo, from the USA Center for Disease Control) of the rat lungworm, a snail- and rat-borne parasite that is expanding its range as the climate changes. It is moving into the Americas from tropical and subtropical Asia. Kind of a buzzkill, but a reminder of the many forms of feedback that are showing us that diseases and infestations are and will continue to increase in the next years, as global warming takes us full on.

Where will this curious shape reveal itself to us next? As the next unexplainable crop circle? A curious tropical depression shape on the weatherman's blue screen? New research findings on its recurrence as an ancient motif in Filipino pre-Hispanic (even pre-Islamic) art and life? Needless to say, everyone's eyes will glaze over as we begin to talk about it in real life, so it will likely end up on this blog as well.

(Balicucha is on sale until approximately the end of this month, so you have that long to buy them for the cost of one conventional chicken egg.)

Also, on an unrelated note, check out our Pinterest account, where we chronicle global recipes for locally available, less common produce.

21.7.17

Hi everyone! Please check out our June-July online sale while it's still up. The sale is for online orders only.

In addition to Legazpi Sunday Market days, Good Food Sundays happen every weekend. It is a nice small market at Mandala Park along Shaw Boulevard, near Puregold. We normally don't venture as far North as this, but on a Sunday, all it takes is a relaxed drive over the Makati-Mandaluyong Bridge. We are with like-minded vendors (some of them our suppliers) such as Balangay's Best, ManilaBake, Edgy Veggy, Chili Asylum, those awesome Buddhists with blankets made of old plastic bottles and super cheap nutritious greens, and of course, the Good Food Company's veg stall run by a very persuasive Ate. Click on the link above for more details!

On a related note, our online store now has options for pickup at our two markets and the shop! This is perfect for people who don't have the time to linger at the shop, or for those afraid of the parking trolls downstairs. We require a 300 peso deposit, which will be refunded when you come by for your goods. It shows up as a shipping option upon checkout.

Lastly, if there is a thing at our shop that you want as a refill, don't be afraid to ask! Usually we can do it by special arrangement.

31.5.17

The pineapple growers of Maydolong, Eastern Samar have been growing the sweetest, juiciest fruit organically for decades on intensely fertile soil. In 2011, they were given a production facility by the government to make vinegar, jam, and "tidbits" (apparently the term for those pineapple bits on pizza). Though things have been slow to start for them, the community is getting ready for the harvest season (roughly around July til September, but you know how the climate is these days).

After Typhoon Yolanda ravaged the region, NGOs descended upon communities to provide assistance. A Czech NGO called People in Need (PIN) began supporting product development for agricultural startups, one of them being the pineapple producers. PIN got in touch with us because we had an existing project in cooperation with them, and for months now we've been throwing the idea around of coming out and taking a look.

And we finally did (Samar is gorgeous!). After a 3 hour ride from Tacloban to our lodgings, we took a 2.5 hour ride to Maydolong to the pineapple production facility. It's quite a full setup from the Department of Science and Techbology, and they even have like 3 years worth of glass jars that came with the grant. The space doesn't have piped in water yet, but they find ways to bring fresh water during production.

We were expecting the Ormoc Queen type (as Ormoc is close by and, well, generalizations), the long, skinny, sweet-yet-fibrous one. But the farmers in the area grow the "Hawaiian" type, which is fatter and also very VERY juicy. Never eaten juicier pineapples. The fruit takes 2 WHOLE YEARS to mature. 2 years! Like a tree crop. Aside from this long growing period, during peak season, when there is an avalanche of pineapples, some of the harvest just rots away, or the pineapples are sold for close to nothing.

Hence the beginning of this little project of ours, for sure we will try to give updates as we make more progress.

8.3.17

Hi everyone! Live (and free) classical music is one of the best things out
there. We have a couple of visiting performers (and my brother, who is
also a classical guitarist) that will be having a small classical guitar
music concert this Thursday, March 9, 2017 at 8 PM at ritual on Arnaiz
Ave., Makati. Our guest artists are: Pongpat Pradit (Thailand), Naoki
Ikuta (Japan), and Gonzalo Misa (Philippines).

Concert is free of charge. Refreshments will be served.
Please enjoy your snack and drinks before or after the live portions, or
during the breaks. Though we love small kids and pets, this may not be the best place to have them spend an hour or two.